Monday Medley

Hug a bulldog today. Gently. It’s National Bulldogs are Beautiful Day, so in honor of the burly beasts, here are some observations about the English breed:

“Hold on with a bulldog grip, and chew and choke as much as possible.” — Abraham Lincoln

“In a contest between me and a bulldog, you would say the bulldog is cuter.” — Sylvester Stallone

“The nose of the bulldog has been slanted backward so that he can breathe without letting go.” — Winston Churchill

“Some days you’re the bulldog, some days you’re the hydrant.” — Anonymous

MOTHER EARTH

Do no harm to your planetary home on Tuesday. It’s Earth Day. And near as we can tell, it’s the only Earth we’ve got — so please stop trashing it. It’s also a good time to remember this Cree Indian proverb:

“Only when the last tree has died and the last river been poisoned and the last fish been caught will we realize we cannot eat money.”

SCHOOL DAZE

Wednesday marks the 379th anniversary of the first public school in North America. Do you know the school’s name?

A. Plymouth Rock School

B. Jamestown School for Boys

C. Boston Latin School

D. Oglethorpe Preparatory School

E. Gloucester Technical Institute

The correct answer is C.

SEASON’S GREETINGS?

Wish everybody a Happy Sumardagurinn Fyrsti on Thursday. Especially if you happen to find yourself in Iceland that day. It’s a national holiday there, marked by parades, sporting events, entertainment and general merriment, all in honor of what they like to call the first day of summer (in April?). In defense of Icelanders, they’re not really seasonally challenged. The tradition of Sumardagurinn Fyrsti goes back to the days when Icelanders used the Old Norse calendar, which divided the year into only two seasons: summer and winter.

CRIKEY!

Hug an Australian Day is Saturday. In case you don’t have a flesh-and-blood Aussie handy, we’ve compiled our dream lists of the all-time top five huggable Australians (men and women).

Women

1. Nicole Kidman

2. Naomi Watts

3. Cate Blanchett

4. Evonne Goolagong Cawley

5. Olivia Newton John

Men

1. Hugh Jackman

2. Russell Crowe

3. Heath Ledger

4. Keith Urban

5. Errol Flynn

Today — Tony Danza (63)

Tuesday — Jack Nicholson (78)

Wednesday — George Lopez (53)

Thursday — Shirley MacLaine (80)

Friday — Renee Zellweger (45)

Saturday — Kevin James (49)

Sunday — Sheena Easton (55)

Compiled by Scott Smith from Chase’s 2013 Calendar of Events and other sources.